GLASSBORO, N.J. – The William Paterson baseball team (13-5, 2-0 NJAC) opened New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play with a pair of victories against the nationally-ranked Profs, defeating host and No. 10 Rowan (13-6, 0-2 NJAC) by 6-5 and 16-8 scores April 2.
GAME ONE
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The Profs took a 1-0 lead with two singles, a sacrifice and an error during the bottom of the second inning.
- The Pioneers evened it up in the fourth. Graduate student second baseman Colin Lombardo opened the inning with a walk and stole second, and three batters later graduate student first baseman Carson Weis singled him in for a 1-1 game.
- A pair of base hits and a wild pitch allowed Rowan to take a 2-1 lead during the home half of the fourth.
- William Paterson again came up with a tying run, this time during the top of the fifth inning. Junior left fielder Noah Cabassa led off with a double to right and sophomore designated hitter Jake Fallers followed with a single to right. Sophomore shortstop Tyler Ruban's fly ball to center was enough to plate Cabassa, a sacrifice fly that made it a 2-2 score.
- The Pioneers took their first lead of the game with a two-run sixth. Weis sent a two-out double to left and graduate student right fielder Dan Carter drove him in with a base hit to center field. Back-to-back base hits by Cabassa and Fallers plated Carter and WP was ahead, 4-2.
- Three base hits and an error helped the Profs tie the game, 4-4, during the bottom of the sixth.
- WP seized a 6-4 edge during the top of the eighth. Junior center fielder Jake Lutz was hit by a pitch to start the inning and graduate student Steve Yelin and Weis both drew walks, loading the bases. Two straight ground balls were thrown to the plate for force outs, but a pair of wild pitches allowed two Pioneers to touch the plate.
- Down to its last three outs, Rowan started the bottom of the ninth inning with a foulout and three consecutive singles, producing one run and a 6-5 score. Sophomore reliever Neel Telidevara took the mound with one out and runners on first and second. He induced a fielder's choice out at third base and a lineout to preserve the victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Weis was 2-for-3 with a double, RBI and two runs scored. Cabassa went 2-for-4 while adding a double and run, and Fallers finished 2-for-4 while driving in a runner.
- Junior starter Ian Metzger scattered two runs and nine hits over 5.0 innings, striking out one and walking two.
- Graduate student Matt Lawler improved to 3-1, tossing 3.1 innings and allowing three runs (one earned) and six hits.
- Telidevara picked up his second save of the year, recording the final two outs.
GAME TWO
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The Pioneers touched the plate four times during the top half of the second inning. Carter and Cabassa started the frame with base hits, and graduate student designated hitter Steven DiGirolamo bunted for a single that was thrown away by the second baseman, allowing Carter to score. Ruban's RBI-single sent home Cabassa, sophomore third baseman Tom Radigan plated DiGirolamo with a sacrifice fly, Lombardo drew a walk and Ruban later scored on an error by the third baseman.
- A base hit, steal, double, walk and double resulted in three Prof second-inning runs for a 4-3 margin.
- Weis doubled, Carter singled and Cabassa was hit by a pitch to load the bases to start the third. DiGirolamo drew a walk, Ruban singled and Radigan produced his second sac fly of the game, pushing WP's advantage to 7-3.
- The Profs strung together a double, single and sacrifice fly for one run during their next at-bat, 7-4.
- Rowan added one more to its total with an error, balk and base hit in the fourth for a 7-5 game.
- WP exploded for eight runs during the top of the sixth inning. Lutz reached on a fielder's choice and Yelin was issued a one-out base on balls, followed by a Weis RBI-single, Carter run-scoring double, Cabassa two-run base hit, DiGirolamo walk, Radigan RBI-single, Lombardo hit by pitch, Lutz bases-loaded walk, Yelin run-scoring infield base hit and Weis RBI-single, making it a 15-5 margin.
- A Lombardo walk, passed ball, flyout and Yelin sac fly added one to the William Paterson ledger in the eighth.
- Four base hits helped the Profs make it a 16-8 game after eight innings.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Weis went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a pair of runs scored, and Carter finished 3-for-5 with a double, RBI and three runs. Cabassa was 2-for-3 while driving in two runs and scoring twice, while Ruban went 2-for-4 and contributed a run and two RBI.
- Senior Darmany Rivas pitched the first 6.0 innings, surrendering five runs, nine hits and two walks while collecting a pair of strikeouts (5-0).
- Senior Dan Castaneda allowed four hits, three runs and two walks, striking out one in 2.0 innings. Junior Nick Nielson tossed the final 1.0 inning and walked one and struck out one.
- The Pioneers got their first sweep in Glassboro since May 5, 1996, when WP defeated Rowan by 9-3 and 2-1 scores. The last William Paterson sweep of the Profs in Wayne came on April 29, 2017, with 8-6 and 4-3 decisions at Jeff Albies Field.
UP NEXT:
- William Paterson will play a non-conference game at St. Joseph's-Long Island Tuesday, April 4, at 4:00 p.m.
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